Playing the Field
by AnonymousWriter2311
Summary: World Cup AU: Star soccer player Sara Lance is put to the test when her world collides with the newly qualified medic Ava Sharpe. With her life under a microscope and her career on the line, will Sara shy away from her sudden attraction to the pretty medic or will Ava become another name on her long list of conquests? Avalance with cameos from most Arrowverse characters.
1. Chapter 1

**New Avalance fic! I have no clue about soccer/football, or how the World Cup is even operates. I just saw a gif on Tumblr and became inspired. Anyway, enjoy!**

* * *

Ava hadn't traveled much before, only ever visiting the surrounding states of her hometown. So when she touched down in Paris, she was blown away by how beautiful the European country was. Paris, France. It wasn't where Ava has envisioned her first paid job as a newly qualified medic, but she was so glad that she'd taken up the offer that her mentor had presented to her. The Women's World Cup wasn't something Ava had given much thought to before. Sure she knew that it existed and could name a few female soccer players if need be, but a tournament like this was often overlooked by its male counterpart. Ava could already imagine the line of medics ready to murder each other just to get a chance to step onto the same field as the overpaid and overdramatic male players. Ava had grown up around sports, her Dad was a high school football coach and Friday nights were often spent sitting on freezing bleachers cheering on the home team, Ava loved the sense of community that filled the air when someone scored a goal, or a touchdown and she couldn't wait to feel that way again.

Her boss for the next month, Ray Palmer, met her at the airport. He was possibly the jolliest person that Ava had ever met. Ray spent the majority of the car ride to Ava's apartment - courtesy of the event sponsors - chatting carefreely about the week he'd already spent preparing for the upcoming month. He informed her that she'd be joined by two other medics, one from England and the other from Germany and that they would divide the matches between them. Ava was relieved to hear that she wasn't the only newbie that would be working the event, and that Ray was using events like this as a training zone for newly qualified professionals. Ava had spent the majority of her plane ride rereading her study notes, making sure she was prepared for anything that would be thrown her way.

The apartment she had been described turned out to be bigger than her small house she'd left in DC. The spacious two-bed apartment was decorated to perfection and kitted out with the latest in kitchen technology. After carrying her oversized suitcase up the three flights of open-aired stairs, Ray informed Ava that he and the other two medics would be occupying the other three apartments in the large building. Ava had never felt the need for protection, but something about having Ray and two other people living and working with her put her at ease and silenced the worrying voice of doubt and scream of fear that had been ringing in her ears.

With the other two medics not arriving until the next day, Ray invited Ava down to his apartment for dinner, an invite that normally Ava wouldn't have accepted – not because she preferred the company of women over men, but because she tried her best to keep work at work and everything else away from it – but on this occasion she was happy to have the company. The two spent most of the evening drinking, eating and getting to know each other. Ava found out that Ray's wife was a referee within the women's soccer league and was arriving in with the American team in a few days. She couldn't help but smile when she saw how bright and hopeful his face got whenever he talked about Nora and the life they had together. As the night began to dwindle to a close, Ava could feel herself drifting off as Ray spoke about his worse injury on the field. Unable to keep herself awake anymore, Ava excused herself and headed down to her own apartment, armed with breakfast supplies that Ray had picked up for her. Before she even had a chance to change out of her travel clothes, Ava passed out on top of her bed, leaving all the unpacking for tomorrow. As her mind filled with dreams of home, Ava couldn't help but feel excited for what was to come.

* * *

Sara Lance was by far the most well-known female soccer player on the American team. She had fans all over the world, fans and admirers that were counting down the days until she took to the field in Paris. This is what Sara had been training her entire life for, every early morning practice, every injury, all the sweat, blood, and tears. This is what it was for...and she had almost blown it.

It was no secret that Sara Lance had a way with women – and men but sleeping with a guy hadn't almost ruined her career. She hadn't set out to sleep with the recruitment agent's wife, honestly. It was just an average night out with some of her team members, they'd all be drinking and then she walked in. It had been a dare at first, Kara – Sara's absolute favorite person in the entire world – had noticed Sara's wondering eyes and bet her twenty bucks to try and get her number, claiming that she was obviously straight and that Sara didn't have as much sway with women that she claimed. What started out a low-key flirting turned into a steamy make-out session in the club bathroom, and a hot and heavy night in Sara's bed. It wasn't until the recruitment day that Sara saw her again, only instead of being pressed up against a wall, she was hand in hand with the man Sara had been working her ass off to impress over the last year. She freaked out internally as soon as Sara's eyes landed on her, and within the first hour of the event she hand down Sara's pants in the disabled bathroom stall. Sara didn't usually go back for seconds, but when a woman is practicing begging for her, she isn't about to say no. When she looks back on her decisions that day, she wishes that she had of stuck to her guns and headed back out to the party. Instead, the two were caught by Sara's manager's wife, Felicity, and practically dragged out of the bathroom.

The recruitment agent never found out about the small affair, and his wife wouldn't dare look at Sara again. But the news had gotten back to Oliver - Sara's oldest friend and manager - and with her reputation already the main focus of the media, he wasn't too pleased with her. If anyone in the press were to ever get wind of this, it wouldn't look good for Sara or the company that had backed her since she started out as a rookie.

As Sara sat in the all too familiar office and admired the framed pictures of her niece and nephew, their toothy smiles and eyes filled with hope, she dreaded the reason behind this oddly official meeting. She knew that Oliver would have her back, no questions asked. But she also knew that she'd fucked up big time, and even though she had made it onto the team with anyone finding out about the affair until she set foot in that stadium, there was no guarantee that she'd be able to play.

"Sorry to keep you." Sara had seen him in a suit plenty of times, but never in this office and never with her. Inhaling the strong scent of his cologne that drifted through the room, Sara forced a smile onto her face and stood to hug the broody man.

"Don't keep me hanging Ollie...what's the damage?" Sara playfully winked as she pushed herself out of the rather stiff embrace. She knew that wasn't a good sign, even she had done her worst, Oliver would always have opened his arms wide for her. They were family, and she feared that her fuck up had changed that.

"You don't play around, do you?" Oliver's sharp upper lip turned into his signature smirk, putting the terrified soccer player at ease as she reclaimed her seat, and swung her legs so that her feet were resting comfortably on Oliver's spotless desk.

"Not when it's my career on the line." The blonde smirked as she crossed her arms over her chest, making her biceps bulge around the sleeves of her shirt.

"Where was this attitude when you were screwing Dan's wife?" The older man snapped as he swiped Sara's feet from his desk and sat in their place. The tension in the air was thick, choking both of them. Oliver never snapped, he could keep his cool, even when he was beyond angry. Sara ducked her head, refusing to meet his piercing gaze. "Sorry...look-" He stopped again and placed a soft hand on Sara's shoulder, forcing her to look up from her hands. "This needs to stop Sara. You can't keep going like this if you want to make it."

"Come on. What does my sex life have to do with anything?" She shrugged away from his touch and blew out a sigh of frustration as she bit her lips – a nervous tick, she's had since she was a child – and bounced her foot off of the desk leg.

"Do you know how many people look up to you Sara? How many young people and little kids look up to you?" Oliver continued. He hated that he had to be the one to deliver this warning to her, but he knew that if it had been anyone else, Sara would have walked out and never returned by this point. "Do you really think parents want their kid's looking up to a sex-crazed, big-headed, troublemaker?" As the words left his mouth, he did his best not to flinch. Sara was like a sister to him, and they'd been through a lot of shit over the years.

"This isn't because I'm having sex, it's because I'm a woman who's having sex with other women!" Sara finally snapped and stood in anger – another trait, the board of directors had a problem with – with such force that the rather heavy chair rocked on its back legs before slamming onto the floor. This was how Sara dealt with most things, with anger and brute force. She had been trying to keep her cool, especially with her family, but sometimes it was just too much for her and counting to ten in the three languages she knew wasn't going to cut it.

"Don't make this about sexuality. The fact that you're an out and proud bisexual is what's stopping the board from getting rid." Oliver quickly shot back, both of them knowing that hardly anyone had a problem with Sara's sexuality, especially him.

"So it's just because I'm a woman then?" The blonde forced a smirk onto her face, as she began to walk around the office, hoping that the pictures of Mia and William would calm her down. "Why do I feel like we wouldn't be having this conversation if I was a man!" Sara stopped her pacing and plonked down onto Oliver's chair, spinning around on it like a child while Oliver picked up her chair and claimed it.

"We wouldn't." He snorted, using his leg to reach under the desk and stop the spinning. "I don't like it either, but it's how the world thinks, Sara...you have what it takes to make it big, kid." His tone dropped. He wasn't her manager at this moment, he was just Ollie and he was praying that she'd heed his warning. "Just tone it down a bit, at least until you get signed to a team next season."

"Tone what down? Being a woman?" Sara shot back, without a trace of anger left in her voice. She wanted to do right by Oliver, he'd done so much for her, be there for every important moment in her life. She knew that if she made it, it would skyrocket his company and she wanted nothing but success for him.

"Sleeping with everything with a pulse." Oliver's laughter filled the air as he shot a knowing wink in the blonde's direction. "The press is going to be all over you, just don't give them anything to talk about."

"Ollie, I know I'm a pain in the ass...but-"

"I know." He cut her off, with a soft smile on his face. "We'll be over to see you win." He motioned to the picture beside his computer, it was his family: him, his wife, his two children, and Sara.

"Don't jinx me now." Sara quickly jumped up, afraid that if she stayed staring at that picture she'd start to cry, and Sara Lance doesn't cry.

"Go. Pack. And please, behave yourself." Oliver opened up his arms and Sara practically ran into them, relishing in the way they still made her feel safe.

"Love you," Sara whispered, so soft and so quiet that Oliver almost didn't hear her.

"You too, kid." With a small kiss on her forehead, Sara was gone. This was her last chance, and she wasn't going to let anything get in her way of making him proud, making them all proud.


	2. Chapter 2

The smell of disinfectant and floor polish wafted as the four medics made their way through the stadium. Ava had met Gideon and Hans the night before at a small get together at Ray's place. Ava had been beyond nervous, but quickly found her new team members extremely welcoming. The stadium was out of this world, and way more impressive than anything Ava had ever seen before. Her sporting experience started and ended with mucky high school fields, but this was some next-level stuff. The newly laid turf was so bright against the hot French sun that Ava couldn't look for too long without shielding her eyes with a raised hand. The newly furnished gym was the highlight of the entire tour for Ava. She'd always been a fitness freak for lack of a better word and had to contain her excitement when Ray informed them that they could also use the gym whilst working here.

"A perk of the job, can't have us slacking when we've got players to keep up with." Ray nudged Ava playfully, breaking her intense eye fuck with the state-of-the-art treadmill. A simple head shake and gentle nudge back were enough to get the tour back on track.

After a few hours exploring the ins and out of the stadium, Ava had a chance to meet some of the other support staff. She talked with referees local announcers, she helped with some of the preparations for the opening ceremony and overall finally relaxed into her new job.

Ray had asked her to do a quick stocktake of equipment in the locker room, a task Ava was happy to accept, especially if it meant she could get out of the hot sun for a few minutes. This had been a section of the stadium that the small group hadn't ventured into, Ray deeming it as 'non-essential'. But this had been the place Ava was looking forward to the most. Since arriving in Paris, Ava had been doing her research into some of the headlining players and it was safe to say that she was fangirling slightly as she walked into the locker room. Each of the team's captains had a jersey hung in their team's colors, their names and numbers calling out to Ava.

Amaya Jiwe, No. 6 Captain of team Africa. From a small village called Zambesi, Amaya was the first of her family to break free of the village life after a video of her impressive win against the local male soccer league went viral. Humble.

Nyssa al Ghul, No. 11 newly appointed Captain of team Israel. Boarding school soccer star turned pro after graduating from college with honors and being scouted into a major league. Starting out from rookie level, Nyssa clawed her way to the top as she jumped from team to team, not wanting to stay in one place for too long. Impatient.

Sara Lance, No. 13 Captain of team USA. The youngest woman to make it to the rank of Captain in a major league team. Complete player, both on and off the field. Cocky.

Ava smiled to herself as she gently reached up to touch the stretchy fabric, the deep red oddly cool against her fingers. She'd heard Sara's name before, seen her signature smirk on the front cover of magazines, heard of the many conquests. Ava shook her head, trying to clear the image of Sara from her mind.

"This place is amazing." Gideon's thick cockney accent startled Ava, prompting her to pull her hand away with such force that it caused the freshly hung jersey to fall onto the floor. "Sorry, did mean to scare you." The brunette took a large step in Ava's direction and quickly swooped down to grab the jersey before Ava could.

"It's fine. I kind of just zoned out." Ava blushed, the soft pink crawling over her collarbone.

"Thinking about Miss Lance?" She smirked as she held up the jersey. "I mean, I get it. I don't think there's a person I know that doesn't think about her every now and again. I know I do." Her eyes zoned in on Ava, their gaze all-knowing and slightly mocking.

"She's impressive, I'll give her that." The blonde quickly busied herself with her intended job, avoiding Gideon's heavy stare. "Not really my type, though." She blew her breath upwards, trying to cool her burning skin.

"She's everyone's type." Her high-pitched giggle filled the locker room. Sensing that Ava was uncomfortable with the topic of conversation, Gideon lifted the red jersey from its place on the bench and reached out to hand it back. "I was thinking about heading out tonight, see what the town has to offer. Wanna join?" She smiled as Ava took the jersey from her and nodded confidently.

"I'd like that. So long as we leave Sara Lance in the locker room." Ava's face held a look of seriousness for a half a second before she stood to hang the wrinkled jersey back in its place.

"Guides honor." Gideon mock saluted and Ava laughed at the silliness of the older woman. Wanting to start their night on the town as soon as possible, the two new friends quickly worked together getting the job done in record time.

* * *

With their coach watching them the entire plane ride to make sure that they stayed on their best behavior, the team couldn't wait to escape and revel in that sweet unadulterated sense of freedom as soon as they touched down. This wasn't Sara's first time as team captain, and she knew exactly what her team needed to kick off their World Cup experience. Playing the ring leader, she gathered everyone and headed to the closest bar. As they entered, she found that she wasn't the only team captain that had brought her team out for a drink. Opponents on the field quickly became drinking buddies and friends off the field. Sara watched on happily as she saw members of her team scattered around the bar, reds mixing with greens, yellows, blues, and oranges. A World Cup rainbow. Sara had to snort at the thought, considering the high level of queerness in the room and the dozens of wondering eyes tracing over her body.

Sara knew she was an attractive person; she knew she that with the right smile and suggestive glance she could have her way with anyone. This little trick of hers had yet to fail her, but as she sat nursing her beer, surrounded by her closest teammates and their tagalongs, she knew that it'd be an empty bed that she'd be returning to tonight. Oliver's warnings played on repeat in her head and she wasn't about to risk her entire career on a meaningless night in the sack. She could feel the hot peering glances following her every move, tracing their way over every muscle and exposed patches of skin. It would be easy for her. All she'd have to do is meet their gaze, show that she's even the tiniest bit interested and then boom. It would happen in the toilets, or maybe the alleyway. It'd be hot, sweaty and quick. Then they'd sneak back inside, she'd join her friends at the other side of the bar and Sara would join her table with that cocky smirk of hers. They'd continue to stare at each other all night long, silently replaying every kiss and touch over and over, until Sara would eventually invite her back to hers for round two. This game of cat and mouse used to fill Sara with an alarming sense of pride, but as she looked up from her beer to confirm her suspicions, Sara found herself more interested in worn-out pictures of national landmarks that were scattered around the bar.

"Another round?" Sara's head snapped back to her table to find Alex smiling sweetly at her. Alex Danvers, Kara's older and extremely attractive sister. She knew that Alex had clear intentions for the night, but Sara would never make the first move when it came to her friends. With a defeated smile, the blonde nodded gently and downed the rest of the flat beer.

"It's my shout." Sara moved to stand but was quickly stopped by Alex's hand resting on her thigh.

"You can get the next one." Her thin lips curved into an all-telling smirk as Sara felt her grip tighten on her thigh for a millisecond. "Or you could make it up to me somehow..." Alex's hand slowly traced upwards, resting high enough to make Sara start to squirm. Worried about their current surroundings and more importantly the fact that Alex's sister and Sara's closest friend was sitting facing them, Sara stood abruptly.

"I insist." She quickly mumbled before speed walking towards the bar.

Sara could feel the anticipation coursing through her body as she weaved through the sea of bodies and away from Alex. This wasn't the first time that Sara had brushed the older woman off, in fact, this type of interaction had been a recurring thing since Alex and Maggie broke off their engagement. Quickly Sara wiped the small pellets of sweat from her forehead and drew a long and calming breath. It was inevitable that they'd eventually end up in bed together, the attraction was there, and she knew that whenever Alex had her sights set on something she didn't stop until she made it hers. Normally, Sara found that quality endearing, a perfect match to her own, but tonight it just seemed desperate and forceful.

"Around round please." Sara smiled at the young barmaid, who smiled shyly and quickly nodded before dashing to fill Sara's order. Turning away from the clumsy barmaid, Sara lent against the bar and surveyed the room. Her gaze met Alex's and for a moment Sara wanted to give in, wanted to drag the brunette out of the bar and get it over and done with. They'd hook up, things would be a little weird for a while and then they'd move past it and continue as normal. Alex would become another name on a long list of bed buddies and nothing more. Shaking her head, Sara expelled the notion and broke their unintentional staring contest.

"Need a hand bringing these over?" The barmaid asked sweetly, forcing Sara to turn around and smile her infamous charming smile.

"I got it, thanks. How much do I owe ya?" The soccer player began to fumble through her pockets, searching for her credit card, only to stop when she felt someone reach over her, their bodies brushing up together. Sara knew that voice, the voice that used to pull her from her slumber, the voice that promised love and tore it away...the voice she'd spent years dreaming of hearing it again.

"On me." Sara looked up slightly, cringing when her suspicions were confirmed. Nyssa. "It's good to see you again, Sara."

Of all the people she thought she'd see tonight; Nyssa had never made it onto the list. Last Sara had heard, Nyssa was unable to represent her team because of an injury. She wasn't meant to be here; she couldn't be here. Sara had done a good job at avoiding the talented player for the past few years. Anytime their respective teams would play against each other, Sara made a point to take that match as her day off, but now she was here. Nyssa hasn't changed one bit. Her tanned face still wore the same crooked smile and glistening brown eyes that Sara had found herself lost in over and over to no avail. But that was before. Before Nyssa left Sara behind for a taste of the big league. She didn't even talk to Sara about it, one day she was there, and then next thing Sara knew her apartment was empty, and she'd moved halfway across the world leaving only a half-assed note for Sara behind.

"You look good...then again, you always did," Nyssa spoke up again, her eyes tracing over Sara, making a point to stop at certain parts of blondes body for emphasis.

"What the hell are you doing here Nyssa?!" The words came out as a sharp hiss as her eyes furrowed, forcing a deep-seated scowl onto her face.

"Same as you hotshot." The pair were fortunately interrupted by Dinah Drake - midfielder for the Israeli team and former team captain - who reached through the pair and nicked a beer from Sara's order. "Fancy feet here is our new cap, didn't you hear." She snared at Nyssa, before taking a large gulp of the stolen alcohol.

"No need to be sour Dinah." Nyssa rolled her eyes at the childish behavior of her teammate, before turning her attention back to the stunned blonde. "See you on the field, Lance...I look forward to seeing you in action again."

"Cocky little shite," Dinah muttered under her breath as they both watched Nyssa strut away. "Don't let her get to you hotshot, that's what she wants." She spared Sara a quick glance as she thanked her for the beer and stumbled away, obviously not taking too well to losing her position as team captain.

Sara stood motionless at the bar, replaying the scene that had just played out over and over in her head. Nyssa was here, and worse she was a fellow team captain. Suddenly the possibility of Sara staying out of trouble wasn't looking as hard anymore but staying out of Nyssa's way was.


End file.
